heirloom tomato risotto

Summer = Heirloom tomato + Sweet basil +White wine.  This tasty equation adds up for me.  Heirloom tomato risotto is always better made with and accompanied by Chardonnay.  We love tomatoes 🍅  I try to keep a large footed serving plate piled high with heirlooms in my kitchen at all times.  My goal is to create a steady stream of sliced or diced summer tomatoes coming out of the kitchen with no end in sight.  So, when I found a recipe for risotto using a generous amount of cut up tomatoes as well as sliced tomatoes, I added + ...make a tomato risotto to my above equation.  I made a few changes to a NYT recipe so here is my adapted recipe.

Ingredients and Recipe for Heirloom Tomato Risotto 
Makes 4 servings

Extra virgin olive oil

1 large yellow onion, diced

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1&1/2 cups arborio rice

Pinch of red pepper flakes

2 garlic cloves

1/2 cup white wine

2 cups cored and then diced heirloom tomatoes

4 cups vegetable broth 

For Serving

Parmesan cheese, grated for sprinkling

2-4 heirloom tomatoes, seasoned with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, cored and sliced for serving on the side

Sweet basil, sliced large or snipped small leaves, for sprinkling

Sweet basil infused extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling 

Heat up the vegetable broth in a  large saucepan on a back burner.

Heat the olive oil in a heavy pan over a medium high heat, like a dutch oven.  Stir in the onion, season with with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Cook and stir until soft and translucent about 5-7 minutes.

Stir in the rice and continue cooking and stirring this rice onion mixture over a medium high heat for about 2-3 minutes.

Stir in the red pepper flakes, garlic and white wine.  Cook until the white wine is reduced and stir in the diced tomatoes.  Add about a cup and a half of the hot vegetable broth, simmer and give an occasional stir to keep the rice from sticking.  As the liquid is absorbed add another generous cup of hot broth and continue to stir.  Add the broth as needed and continue to stir until the rice is tender, taste for seasoning adding sea salt and black pepper.  Add a final half cup of broth and stir just before serving risotto.

Serve in individual shallow bowls with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, grated Parmesan, snips or slices of sweet basil and sliced tomatoes on the side, season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.